Pandora and Beyond
by Rhandom1
Summary: Meet Ren and Dinah, a couple of mercs looking to make a living doing a simple job on what is left of Pandora. But a mystery offer from an unlikely source pulls them deeper into the life changing course of vault hunting. This story is complete fiction for what happens 6 months after The Fight for Sanctuary. Please let me know if you would like to read more. Thank you for reading!
1. Chapter 1 - Meet the R&D Team!

Pandora was a shit-show. That is the easiest way to describe what all the corporate wars had done to the place. It was certainly no Prime-11 before, no decent beaches or five-star hotels but it at least had a semblance of order. You were either Atlas, Crimson, a Bandit, or some schmuck that got stuck on a forsaken hellhole.

But now, the chaos had taken its toll. The eridium mining had left little more than desert, dirt, and destruction. The corporate wars and the subsequent war with the Raiders had left entire species extinct. There used to be Bullymongs here. All dead now because some ex-military asshole released a gas on the planet that killed most living things and turned them into plant…living things.

I gently landed the scuttle ship on a rooftop. If the information we were given is correct, the building we were landing on used to be a bar. Now, I must fire up the afterburner to clear the thick, dying roots to create an impromptu landing site. Fortunately, the stubborn plant matter is dying without a steady supply of blood to keep it going. It burns rather easily.

"Christmas what a shit-show," chimes the familiar female voice through my comms. Dinah sits in the co-pilot chair of the small two-seater, but she keeps her hands well clear of the console. She couldn't fly this thing if I set the auto-pilot for her but once the bullets started flying, and they always did on these missions, you could forgive a slight hiccup in her training such as flight school to have her at your back.

"I was thinking the same thing," I replied into the helmet.

"Let's leave the oxygen flow on until we can scan the ground and ensure the air is breathable," she said. I guess the shock of seeing a flying city now covered in varying shades of green and brown vegetation had worn off. No real surprise, she had seen some serious shit during the corporate wars.

"Yes, ma'am," I replied, knowing she would silently cringe at being called "ma'am".

"Damnit, Ren, don't call me that," she said but I could her the laugh in her voice. Anyone else called her ma'am and she would probably pull their liver out through their ear or something.

"You would rather I call you sir?"

"I would rather you shut up and land this thing."

"You got it, Boss!" I made sure she heard my smile and was rewarded by a chuckle.

I hovered the pod slightly over the spot and touched her down in the newly cleared zone without a hint of a bump. Dinah put her fist out and I tapped it. She hated landings more than any part of flying. She would gladly jump out if it meant not landing. But she was slightly less tense with me on the stick and always seemed relieved when the landing was smooth. Trust me, a less tense Dinah is a happy universe.

The small craft powered down and I unfolded the solar charger. We would want full charge to get back to the Orbital ship because the Pandora gravity was heavier than usual. Probably something to do with the vault but I was certainly no scientist. We unlocked our shoulder restraints, and I let Dinah take the lead. She grabbed her Assault rifle she had named "Chatty Cathy". I think rifle is bit of a lie for this gun, it was a mini-gun that could spit out 2,000 rounds a minute with an elemental cartridge holder in case you needed to also burn or electrocute a person before the 9.84mm bullets turned their body into meat paste.

She also carried a quad-barreled shotgun slung across her back, and a 9-shooter magnum on her hip. I fully suspected that she had a small nuclear bomb hidden in her boot because one thing Dinah really liked to be certain of was that anyone she shot would never be identifiable in any way.

I, one the other hand, was perfectly fine with my completely vanilla sniper rifle.

And my Maliwan SMG with corrosive bullets.

And my Torgue pistol with explosive head rounds on my left hip.

And the knife on my right hip with extra pointy blade.

And I will bite your face if you get that close. I've done it before, I got the vid to prove it.

Dinah gave me a quick nod and hit the door-release swinging the back doors open as silently as a sun rise. I kept very good care of this ship. She had gotten us out of a lot of scraps.

I slung "Snipy" across my back, I sucked at naming my guns, and felt it nestle nicely as I held out a small scanner that would send its readout back to my visor. So far, the air was fine, as it should be. The questions would be lower where the gasses had settled into the ground. But we were only here for a recon job. No hanky-panky or assassinations, just good old intel gathering.

But for two mercs trying to build a bit of a following, we would be happy to unload the planet of any cash it wanted to offer up.

We went slowly, Dinah swinging Chatty Cathy in a slow arc and I knew her eyes were scrutinizing everything. She always seemed more than ready to squeeze a few thousand rounds into a rat if it peeped it's head out, but she trusted me to fly as much as I trusted her instincts on the ground. If something needed to be shot, she would let me know. Usually by shooting it but hey, its communication and that can be complicated.

I kept one eye on the scanner readouts and one eye on any signs of gas pockets or soil burps but it seemed like the 6 months following Hector trying his big take over of Sanctuary, Pandora had simply accepted the new gas as a part of itself. Planets could be amazing once you got to know how they worked.

"I got nothing, D," I said. Our comms was linked in our helmets, so we did not need to worry about keeping quiet. "No shifting chems in the air or displaced O2 vectors where we might see a burp. Hell, I don't even see any heat fluctuations."

"Copy that, lets get some soil and plant samples then we can see about capturing a local skag."

"You want to mess with a skag den?" I asked. She sighed heavily and took a second to respond.

"It's worth another 15K if we can bag some wildlife," she finally said. I knew that, of course, I handled our contracts.

"Samples first and we can see how much time we have left. The B&B only has enough fuel to orbit for 48 hours." I offered in response.

Dinah didn't respond other than to nod her head. I knew it was no good to push her because I knew what really bothered her about it. Not my place to tell it but know that skags send her into a dark place where it can be very difficult to pull her from.

We continued slowly, methodically, letting the scanner continue its incessant desire for more information. We didn't speak, we didn't need to. We were there, doing our job, there was little to say. It isn't often people get to say that it seems. Just be together, doing your thing.

We had nearly reached the place where someone had sold Guns and Ammo which went deeper into the ground. If we were to find soil leakage, it would likely be there. But Dinah held up her hand and on some deeper brain level, I saw it and halted in almost the same instant as her hand went up. I put my hand to my SMG riding just behind my butt and followed her gaze but did not see anything out of the ordinary.

Dinah held up two fingers, made a walking motion, covered her eyes, then dropped her hand in a chopping motion. Two creatures, running to take position behind cover with guns, shoot first.

I tapped a button and the scanner pulled itself into my right glove, clearing my visor of any readouts other than my shield strength and my own vital readouts. Dinah motioned low with her hands and guided me behind a chunk of wall to our left. I went without question and traded the Maliwan for "Snipy".

I found a good place where I could kneel comfortably and brace Snipy against a part of the barrier. It was nice corner leaving very little of me exposed. Something pinged followed by the crack of a rifle. The calculations ran through my head faster than my wit could make a joke about rifle cracks.

"Less than 200 meters from the west," I said robotically. I was in shooting mode now; life had become something to take away from someone, so the brain went into math overdrive. I saw where the bullet hit, and they were aiming at me. Dinah stood out in the open and the were aiming at me. Slightly above us so not on a roof, likely in the building. Another bullet pinged off the barrier to my right, they were not very good. I hoped it wasn't some kid being an asshole. Because I had them zeroed.

"In the building directly in front of us, suppressed rifle, window to your right," I fed Dinah the information and slowed my breathing. At this distance my bullet would tear through the cheap wall and whoever was behind it like tissue. I waited for Dinah to call it, keeping my brain clear and my heart rate low. Breathe in, let it out. Four counts in, eight counts out. Another bullet pinged above me.

"Why are they shooting at you," Dinah asked. "I am standing right here, surely they can see me."

"Maybe your gun isn't big enough," I replied.

"HEY!" Dinah shouted, nearly blasting out my ears.

"Damnit, D," I hissed. "My focus is blown!"

"Hey in there," she shouted this time through her external comms. "We aren't here to hurt anyone! Just getting some samples and we are off!"

No response other than another bullet pinging off the barriers. Seriously, not even close, more like in my general direction.

"If you take another shot at my partner, I am going to unload Cathy here on your position," Dinah said, a hint of edge to her voice. I agreed; something was off here. On a chance, I flipped on my personal scanner.

Red blips were surrounding us.

"We are being surrounded, D. This is just a distraction!"

Dinah tapped a button on the PDA attached to her arm, probably turning her own scanner on. I had to admit; I was a bit surprised she didn't have hers on the whole time. But that was for later. There were a lot of red dots coming.

"Okay," she said into my ear. "Guess it's time to play."

I rolled further left behind the barrier and let Snipey fall to the ground. This kind of fire fight would require me keeping them off her back while she blew up half the planet. I was totally fine with my job and quite good at it. I watched the red blips closely and Dinah just stood there. As the blips stopped moving, we could tell they were all set and waiting for someone to initiate an attack.

"You're surrounded," came a response from the building.

"Yeah, we know," Dinah replied.

"Oh, yeah," the voice called out trying desperately to sound authoritative. They sounded desperate. "Well, then you should know you got no way off this rock without us killing you!"

"Okay," Dinah said back. "Not so certain of that statement but let's say you are right. What do you want?"

"Your ship," came the response.

"You won't all fit on that," Dinah said.

"What?"

"It's only built for two people. I am guessing the other 12 people surrounding us want the scuttle ship as well. But you won't all fit."

"That ship is huge! We can all fit easy!"

"It's a scuttle ship. The back end is filled with science equipment and the nuclear drive it takes to break through the atmosphere. It's got two seats, no autopilot, and trust me I know the one person who can actually fly it and you keep shooting at him."

In the silence we could hear arguing coming from the building but couldn't make out any words. In my earpiece I could hear Dinah trying not to laugh. I kept my eyes on the rooftops where my scanner told me several enemies waited.

"I don't believe you," came an angry reply. "Now drop the ship keys and back off or we start killing!"

"Ship keys," Dinah said. "We don't have keys to the scuttle, you just hit the start button. How the hell long have you people been here?"

More silence broken only lightly by the breeze of arguing voices. If I died at the hands of this group, my shame would follow me long into death.

"Damnit woman just drop whatever you use to open the doors and back off! And Linda shut the hell up! I know what I am doing!"

There was silence then the crack of a gun from the building. Someone on the roof stood up and looked that way. They were human, wearing a pair of goggles and a scarf over the bottom part of their face but they were unmarked so not bandits. I relayed the information to Dinah as a hand reached up and jerked the person down.

Suddenly a door opened down the street and out strode a woman with long blonde hair that looked like it had never seen a shower. Behind her, she dragged the body of a man in one hand, in the other she held a small but serviceable pistol.

"Sorry folks," she said, "Ricky here thinks he's a bandit because he used to run with Nine-toes. He won't give you no more trouble."

"Good gravy, Linda," came a shout from up top, "Did ya kill him?"

"Hell no, Poppa, just knocked his dumb ass out," Linda shouted back. "Get everyone off the roofs, I told you we shouldn't have brought the kids."

"Well, Ricky thought the numbers would look good," Pops responded.

"Yeah, well Ricky is an idiot and I told you this wouldn't work! Now get the kids off the roof before someone hurts themselves! We ain't got a doc since Zed and the Raiders all went off planet!"

Pops nodded and turned and started speaking. A few other people stood and started filing away, I watched on my scanner as they all backed off. I noticed none of them had a gun.

"Well, this is a shitty way to say Welcome to Pandora but Welcome to Pandora!"

For the first time in what seemed like years, Dinah laughed loudly as Linda strode forward with her hand out gun butt towards us.


	2. Chapter 2 – Exposition!

**Chapter 2 – Exposition! It's like EXPLOSION of words!**

I watched the woman named Linda approach us, the barrel of her gun held out. The sun cracked lines in her face belied the easy way she moved towards us. Nothing about her screamed danger and that was instinct you learned fast in our line of work. So, I held out my hand as she slapped the handle into it. With a shake, she smiled and spoke again.

"Let me gather up the rest and we will get out of your hair," She let go of the one she called Rickey and I passed the gun over to Ren. I could imagine that crooked grin under his mask and the sarcastic glimmer in his gray eyes. He had probably never heard me laugh like that, but this woman had me off guard. I was glad to have Ren on my six, I had never met a better pilot or truer friend in all my years with the Galactic Special Forces.

Ren examined the gun quickly as I watched Linda helping the kids slide off the roof and into what looked like a trash can. The dead vines had destroyed most of it, just as they had the entire city of Sanctuary.

"It's a one-shot pistol," Ren's voice drifted through my earpiece. I turned my attention to the gun, an odd-looking piece at close range. The barrel almost looked like a shotgun but just a large chamber where the cylinder should be. "It's a damn air gun."

I blinked in confusion and suddenly the whole situation seemed even funnier. Who walks around Pandora with a one-shot air pistol? Granted the planet was not as dangerous with the vault interests looking elsewhere but there was still plenty of bandit groups vying for dominance in this wasteland.

The flight in had given me a long look at the place I had once called home. It looked so different now. It was worn down, dirty, and tired, and ugly. It had never been beautiful in my lifetime but now…it was dying from a cancer of greed.

"Check on the one they call Rickey," I said into my comms. Ren gave me the gun back and I set Cathy on the ground. No need spooking the locals any more than necessary. I walked over to where the kids were helping each other off the roof, Linda watched me approach. I could tell by her manner she understood the significance of me laying my own weapon down.

"Your gun," I said, holding the grip of the odd pistol towards her. She took it gently and it vanished behind her back. "That is an interesting design."

"Wait until you see what Ricky was firing," Linda said helping down the last of the kids.

"Hey, D," Ren's voice cut through my ear. "He had a freaking pea shooter rifle. It wasn't suppressed, it was shooting pebbles! How on earth have these people survived on this planet?"

It was a good question and while I could hear the humor in his voice, I knew he would worry at the problem until he had an answer. It was another reason I had stayed with him for so long. He was a thinker and could see answers that eluded the most hardened soldiers. It helped that he was almost as good on the long gun as he was at flying, but shooters are as common as the stars in this business. A partner that can think, that's a rarity.

"So, Linda," I said, making sure I had my external comms switched on. "You wanna start telling me who the hell you people are?"

Linda looked at me hard, like I had upset her delicate sensibilities. Everything about this scenario was laughable but there was a rhythm to this whole charade. I felt in my bones that we were being set up, but I simply could not see how.

"Not sure what you mean by that," Linda said.

"Your name might be Linda, but I don't buy the old farm woman bit. Nor do I buy that a putz like that talk you into anything you did not want to do." I reached up and took off my helmet. I wanted her to look into my eyes for this. "I don't like being lied to, but I can live with it. It comes with the job. Being played for an idiot, however, will get you dead real fast."

Linda's eyes hardened but not for long. The others gathered around her seemed to wither as well, as if some big secret had been revealed. Linda seemed to deflate when her eyes could no longer meet mine.

"Can we at least take this inside and out of the heat?" Linda finally said.

"Inside where," Ren asked, his sarcastic voice crackled the air, giving the sudden oppression a boost of humor. "Do you have a tea parlor in one of these dead roots?"

A few of the kids cracked smiles at that one. But Linda simply looked angrier. There was something about all this I could not put my finger on. If I know the parameters of a situation, I can make a fluid battle plan. Whether it's a scorched earth or a simple cut the head off the snake, I can create an entire mission set with just me and Ren.

But I could not put my finger on this one. My instincts screamed that it was off but how? Linda obviously was not what she seemed, and no one was showing the slightest concern for Ricky. If he really were a bandit, that might make some sense. I had no idea who Nine-toes was but assumed that person was dead since there are ex-members of his crew. Anywhere you went in the universe there was one guiding rule about bandit clans, you did not leave them.

"There is no need to be rude anymore," Linda blurted out. "You figured us out, you beat us, congratulations! Go brag to your friends how you took down some unarmed children who just needed some food!"

"Here's the problem lady," Ren said slowly coming our way. Linda's outburst had cowed the others behind her and raised the tension again. "You think we are idiots. We are not. Perhaps your little gang trick has worked on others who landed before us or perhaps you really are the worst bandits in the universe. But I don't believe either of those statements to be true."

Ren paused for dramatic effect as he slowly removed his helmet. His bright red hair was a wild mess from all the sweat and heat and his gray eyes danced with humor. He was short, not midget short but when it comes to warriors, one does not usually think of muscular guy who stands only about 1.7 meters.

"First, the ineptness of this whole thing was just hilariously wrong from the start. Second, I don't know where you got this Ricky guy, but he is not a regular member of your little band. Third, you live on a bandit and thresher infested back water and you carry a concussion pistol and rock shooter."

Ren walked up to Poppa then which made Poppa take a step back. There was nothing intimidating about Ren, unless he wanted there to be. Then Ren spread his arm wide indicating everyone.

"But you all have some seriously kick ass shields," he said triumphantly. Ren indicated the shield at Poppa's hip. "Look at this one! It isn't rigged like it was busted out of one of the machines, and the shield strength is far above average. Plus, your indicator lights tell me the shield is good against most elemental damage. Poppa, your shield is state of the art.

"And every single one of you, except Ricky over there, has one. A top of the line shield at your hip. They are very well maintained, they are clean, and they are damned expensive. You all are doing pretty well for a bunch of poor, hard-working, folksy types stuck in the middle of nowhere."

Ren looked at the youngest of the group and stuck out his fist. "I did pretty good, yeah?" The kid grinned and tried to shake Ren's fist. Ren only smiled bigger at that. That is why I needed Ren at my back. The shields should have been obvious, they practically glittered in the Pandora sun. I really hate this planet.

"With what my partner knows," I continued, "added to what I know, you should probably have the rest of your men come out now, then you can let us know who you really work for."

Linda finally let out a long breath and laughed quietly at the ground. "They told me you two were good," she said, her voice smoothing out, losing its frontier cadence and being replaced by something far more refined.

She yelled something in a foreign language, which our translators did not translate, and about 20 other people in various types of camouflage began appearing from all around us. This was serious, high quality tech. The kind of stuff I used in the special forces. They were definitely corporate; the only question was who.

"Wonderful," I heard Ren say as the soldiers all came forward, weapons down. "Can some of you help me clear out the building back there? I heard it was a bar. Maybe something survived the vegetarian attack."

Linda and I held each other's eyes for a long moment. The humor leaving mine, tension building in hers.

"It's too bad," I said to Linda, "I was really starting to like the ballsy nature of this attack."

"All in good time," she replied, "It will be worth it to her the rest. Perhaps, you will like me again."

"Anything is possible."

It didn't take long for the crew to clear out space in the old bar. Ren disappeared with the one called Poppa deeper into the place and soon after, we all had some disgusting beer flavored drink that tasted like warm piss. Ren somehow got his hands on a couple of bottles of what smelled like much harder stuff although no one could tell what it was supposed to be. Especially since the liquid colors were as nameless as the liquids themselves. But it burned all the way down and was as close to a peace offering that they would get for now.

"Alright," I said after we shared our first quiet rounds. "Who are you and why are you looking for us?"

"My name is Mae Lynn Anshin," the woman said slowly, letting the name sink in. "My family is the owner of the Anshin corporation. We would like to offer you both a very exclusive deal."

It was her turn to pause for dramatic effect.

"We would like to hire you as our Vault Operators."

I looked at Ren who stood beside the table, his mouth working to come up with a quip. I couldn't blame him; my brain was in over-drive as well. I finally let out a deep breath and got my brain under control.

"Okay," I said quietly, "let's talk."

Ren slid into the booth beside me as the lady across from us spoke again.

"As you know, since the death of the one who called himself Handsome Jack, Hyperion has been in a state of massive fluctuation. Since Atlas opened the first vault, Atlas has been crawling out its own holes. So now the word is out about multiple vaults all over the known universe, and a few in places we haven't explored yet. Everyone wants to get their hands in the pot." Mae Lynn paused to sip at her drink, giving us a moment to absorb it all so far.

"So Anshin wants a piece of the vault prize as well," Ren asked. When it came to these types of talks, I let him take the lead. He heard more than the words, something about listen to what is not being said. I was too straight forward for these types of talks.

"Well, yes, that is the gist of it," Mae Lynn spoke again. Her voice was elegant sounding, brimming over with education in an actual school.

"But you have kept so quiet during all of the vault mess," Ren continued. I kept quiet and watched. I always learned something from these sessions. "Why now?"

"We have taken advantage of an opportunity that affords us some leverage to get in the race," Mae said casually.

"That was appropriately cryptic," Ren scoffed.

"Please, Mr. Ren, all in good time," Mae offered. "Do you know what Anshin does?"

"You make shields," I said, happy to contribute. The smile I got in return made me wish I had kept my mouth shut.

"We are so much more than that, Ms. Dinah Ruthven."

Now that threw me off. How in the hell did they know my full name? I suck at keeping my emotions off from my face, but Ren didn't even blink. I don't think he even knew my last name.

"Ah, the old we know who you really are routine," Ren said the humor taking a harder edge. "Well, Mrs. Mae Lynn Anshin, I know your company also makes over 95% of the shielding boxes that other companies use to put their shield tech into. Anshin is a medical device corporation with your hands in almost every corner of the medical field. I know you make a vast majority of the disposable bags or syringes that almost every planet uses in their hospitals and clinics.

"I know you have never made a gun for public consumption, but you do have a very select line of non-lethal weapons such as stun grenades and flashbangs that you wholesale to the military. I especially like your sonar pulse grenade that causes some non-human species to have seizures."

"I am impressed Mr. Ren," Mae said slowly.

"I am not done," Ren continued, his voice getting edgier. "I also know for a fact that you are not a corporation with clean hands. You incited the Saturn incident which obliterated the entire city of Orpheus in the Milky Way Galaxy. You also quietly orchestrated the take down of Pangolin, which I might add none of the board of directors have been seen since. You also have a nasty habit of opening new factories on new planets and then paying hush money to the locals when people go missing.

"So cut the innocent act. You want to talk to us, we are listening. But this is absolutely the last time I am going to tell you to stop treating us like morons."

I sat with a hard look but inside I was smiling. Ren always acted like I was in charge, but I would follow him anywhere. I know he would for me as well because he already has, many times over.

The silence stretched as Mrs. Anshin tried desperately to control her anger. She was not used to being out thought but Ren had put her on the defensive. I could only guess that she was new at this, she seemed to have a hard time understanding the flow of a conversation with normal people she could not control. At last, she sighed deeply.

"You are right," she spoke quietly. "I apologize. I have never negotiated before, so I am unused to the protocols. Let us start over, please?"

"It's no problem Mrs. Anshin," Ren said gently. "But whoever sent you here threw you to the wolves if you have no experience negotiating with mercs."

"I am here on my own, Mr. Ren," she said quietly, as if admitting some great truth. "My father is the president of the Anshin corporation, and he does not know we are here. But we have watched your careers carefully. We knew we may only have one shot at this and wanted to be certain about our pick."

"Your pick for what," I asked.

"I will answer that Ms. Ruthven…"

"Please, do not call me that. Dinah is fine. This is Ren, do not inflate his ego any more with the Mister crap."

"Very well, Dinah. I will answer your question but please allow me a bit of conversation." Mrs. Anshin paused long enough for Ren and me to settle into our seats a bit better and giving her a nod.

"Thank you. You are correct on all counts Ren. My family and our business do not have the clean hands we wish to portray to the world. We spent a vast majority of our wealth in buying the patent rights to rebuild the New-U system recently put up for sale by Hyperion. We only have a portion of the rights so now there will be a race to make a better New-U system.

"My father feels the company should focus on building the New-U system, but we are uncertain if we can afford to fund the research for a long period of time. My idea is to find a small competent group of mercs to investigate what riches the vaults have to offer up. We can use that to fund a continued research into a better system for body restoration. One that anyone could afford, not just corporate sponsored mercs or soldiers.

"Imagine being able to include a New-u package into a medical plan. Being able to research a cancerous cell in perpetuity, being able to constantly work with a mentally ill person, to find cures for plagues that have ripped our species apart for eons.

"We cannot make what our corporation and indeed my very family, go away or wash the stains from our hands. But I do believe that we can slowly turn our company to helping again rather than simply doing business. My ancestors who founded the company invented the procedure that allowed nanites to quickly heal wounds. It was given to hospitals for free. Making the shield casings and syringes was a way to keep the company afloat. I want to lead us back to that way of thinking. But I will warn you, I am alone in my family for wanting this. While they will not work against us, they will not help us either. They will deny any connection with vault hunters as they fear it will bring the larger corporations to our doorstep. I am ready to pay from my own inheritance in order to steer the future of our company back on track. But I will need the wealth brought in from the vaults to help with that."

Mrs. Anshin paused to take a breath. I had not seen such passion in a long time. It reminded me of myself when I had first joined the Galactic forces. We all thought we would change the system. Instead we were chewed up and spit out, often just before we were up for our pensions.

"To answer your question, Dinah. I wish to hire you both to be our exclusive vault hunters."

I even knew those words were coming but it was still a kick in the teeth to hear them.

"You want us to become vault hunters?" I asked like an idiot. But Mrs. Anshin was beyond the pettiness of trying to make us feel dumb and she said nothing.

"I do," she replied. "Fully funded and access to what we have as an armory. Our selection may be small but as Ren said, it is military grade. There are other benefits as well, but we would rather wait until you have signed on before we get into the details."

I turned to look at Ren who was studying the faces of everyone around us.

"Give us until morning to talk it over?" Ren replied. Mrs. Anshin looked disappointed but nodded her acceptance. With that Ren slid out of the booth and began gathering his things. I followed suit, a little confused. This is what we had talked about ever since our first fateful pairing on a tiny planet called Timbuktu. Now he was walking away from the table.

I followed him as he left the bar and I gathered my own belongings. I was surprised to find Cathy right where I had left her. Most people tried to steal it only to find it was logged to my DNA. I ran my thumb over the nanite trigger and Chatty Cathy vanished and reappeared in my hands. It was good to have her weight again. It felt like I knew where I was and what I needed to do.


	3. Chapter 3 - No Rest

**Chapter 3 – No Rest for the Wicked**

After we had gathered our few belongings, we headed back to the scuttle. The sun was setting, and I didn't want to be out in the dark of Pandora. Especially surrounded by a DNA changing plant that might still have active pods. I absolutely refused to die on Pandora.

I knew Dinah would have questions, especially about walking away from the table, but they would wait until we were in the relative safety of our scuttle. I might have revealed a bit too much of myself back there, but it was a risk I was willing to take. I trusted Dinah more than I had ever trusted anyone but if the Anshin lady had any instincts, she was conferring with someone who might have more insight into what happened at the table.

No one said anything as we climbed back to the rooftop and opened our door. They didn't offer to help either which was telling. We had upset them, possibly in their eyes, rejected them outright. Or it was entirely possible that they simply had no clue what to do about us. When dealing with corporate suits, you never could tell what they were thinking. It helped to keep them off balance.

I unloaded my gear into my locker, keeping only the pistol handy. I noticed Dinah kept her quad-barrel shotgun free. A good choice for close quarters but I would be arm wrestling her over clean up duty if anything got inside. I watched as Dinah started to undo her hazard suit and followed her lead. I wanted out of this thing. It was my least favorite outfit and did nothing for my calves.

Down into our regular clothes, I stepped back outside and went to the edge of the roof. I watched as the older man they had called Poppa was pointing out directions to a few of the soldiers. As I suspected, he was more than what he seemed. No soldier but likely Mrs. Anshin's secretary or personal assistant or whatever the hell they called them.

At the old man's commands the soldiers were busy setting up a guard position. Looked like they would be staying the night in the bar. I said as much to Dinah over our comms.

"Makes sense," she replied. "It's defensible, Keeps the group together easily. But if anyone decides to burn em, they don't have much choice but to cook or come out."

Shit, they would need an overwatch.

"Hey, Pops," I said down and he looked up at me, hands going to his hips. "Do you have an Over set up? You could put one on the left building that could scope the whole town."

Poppa looked at where I pointed then waved his understanding. He called two soldiers to him and pointed in the direction I had shown him. That was a good sign, he listened to advice.

"They have established an overwatch," I said into the comms."

"Smart, hopefully on the building to the left? They can see most of the town from there."

I smiled to myself. Damn we were good together.

"Roger that," I replied. "Coming in to wind her down."

I returned to the scuttle and stepped in, hitting the button to close the doors behind me. Dinah sat in a white tank top and loose-fitting camouflage patterned shorts. Her brown hair had been colored a vibrant shade of orange and she rarely ever wore makeup. The scuttle had two compartments on either side of the ship that acted as storage topside but could slide up revealing two single beds. Dinah sat on hers, cleaning her revolver, and thinking. I know the thinking face all too well.

I said nothing as I locked the back doors and set the external alarms to on. I recovered the scanner relay from my suit and went to the pilot seat where I proceeded to upload all the readings we had taken already. It would upload to the B&B still in orbit overhead. While I waited for Dinah to find the words she wanted, I ran a quick check on the B&B, ensuring the girl was still humming. I noticed a slight tremor in a warp core, so I set about running a diagnostic.

It was a waste of time, of course. Warp cores tremor constantly, it's like Rakks shitting on your new house, as natural as the stars. But I had to wait until Dinah was ready to talk. If I pushed her, she would shut down. And I was ready to answer her questions.

Finally, I heard her take a deep breath. Here it came.

"Ren," she started.

"Yep? Is it dinner time?" I asked I reply.

"No, well, yes but in a minute."

I turned in my seat to look at her. Her brown eyes were heavy with concentration and more than a smidge of concern.

"How did you know about the Saturn colony? And how did you know she was married?"

"Well, the married thing was a guess, honestly. I assumed she was because I know Anshin is very traditional and expects the progeny to be married by a certain age. The age changes with who you talk to, but I felt it was a pretty good guess she was older than twenty, so I took a shot."

Dinah took only a second to chew on that before nodding at the logic. "And Saturn?"

"Yeah," I said. It was my turn to breath heavily. "I know because I was there. They were running a serum test to cure neuro-related dementia from mineral mining. They did so secretly as most corporations do. Also, as usual, the serum was a massive failure and gave us what we know of today as the Z-virus.

"Of course, it would cost them billions to recover what was lost so they jammed a false report through the galactic council, and the council took their campaign donation and released a nuke on the city. Destroying everyone in it, except the Z-virus. All the while, Anshin vehemently denied any and all connection with the incident and to this day there are only a handful of people outside the Anshin corporation that know they invented the very virus that creates zombies."

I leaned back in my chair and tapped the diagnostic screen, mostly to give myself something to do while Dinah plowed through this news. She was smart, she would put the pieces together but in her own time. She could make lightning fast decisions in the field but off the field, she liked to think things through. I was almost exactly the opposite.

"How do you know about it then? Did you work for Anshin?" Dinah asked, suspicion heavy in her voice.

"No, I told you I have never worked for a corporation," I met her eyes firmly and the suspicion died out. "Think about it, D. What are my skill sets that compliment yours so well?"

I could see the gears turning in her head as Dinah was linking the facts of our history with this new knowledge. Finally, her eyes went wide. I don't know that I had ever seen that surprised.

"You were Intelligence," she remarked, somewhat mortified and somewhat ecstatic to have gotten the answer.

I gave her a simple nod.

"I always assumed you were special forces like me, or perhaps a corporate flyer but it all makes sense! Your one of the best pilots I have ever seen, you don't flinch from a fight but you prefer weapons with a high accuracy, you have knowledge of corporate life as well as the ability to quickly get the pulse of a city, and you are not nearly as cocky about it all as you should be!"

She was getting excited, which I liked to see. I generally trust the relationship between us to see us through most things. But even I was a bit nervous about this bit of news. We spies get a lot of bad press. Most of it was deserved.

"Wait, how did you get out of that? I worked special forces and my understanding was you spooks never got out." Now she had her suspicion back up.

"That is true," I said with a nod, but I had no humor at the moment. This could be a very rough night. But after three years together, she needed to know. "According to the official government logs, I died on Saturn in the bombing of Orpheus. They didn't even try to contact me to let me know it was happening. Fortunately, I had seen it coming and was already off world when the bomb dropped.

"I sat in orbit and watched what the galactic council did at the beckoning of a small-time corporation and decided I was done. A life lived in the shadows, never questioning an order, just a finger on the trigger, and for what? Death by nuking in a mining town without so much as a thank you for your service."

I looked to Dinah then almost needing her to see my side of things. If she didn't, if this went sideways, well, I'd be pretty messed up for a long time.

"That sounds about right," she said quietly. "For what it's worth, I'm glad you did it. I have never met a partner like you, and I am thankful every day that you have my six."

I blew out a long breath I didn't even realize I was holding.

"Is that why you walked away from the table?" she asked.

"No," I scoffed back, "That is to keep her off balance and to see what kind of juice she has in the system. If she is as green as she says, tomorrow will be a cake walk for us. But I always assume I am being played, especially by a corp."

"This is what we always talked about," Dinah said slowly. It was as if the earlier conversation had never happened. I would kiss her, if I wasn't afraid she would rip my tongue out for it. "Vault hunters, where the real action happens with real money."

"I know but you know how the game is right now, D" I told her punching up the food synth screen. I was drained and hungry.

"I do, Ren. The corporations are sponsoring vault hunters with access to unlimited funds and weaponry. Plus, they have the new scoreboard which can give us access to some very powerful gear. With any amount of luck, we can hit a vault and retire in five years or so."

"So, you're a go on accepting the position?" I said with a smirk. We were getting our banter back.

"Only if you are," she said back, no trace of smirk on her face. Not sure how she did that.

"Let's see what the morning brings," I said, ending the matter. "I think it's your turn for dinner. What do you feel like tonight?"

"Spaghetti," she said almost instantly. "And wine."

I grinned and punched it up.

The night slid past with all the fanfare of a successful changing of one's shoes. Dinah sometimes slept rough in scuttle. I understood. Spend enough time blowing craters in the various life forms of the galaxy or having them trying to open you up like a can of protein lumps, you develop a sense of danger. Even when you sleep your brain is working overtime on every shadowy corner of your other senses.

But the scuttle was relatively safe, unless another orbital ship dropped a nuke on us. Those odds were pretty low, but this was Pandora were the odds are never in your favor. It's like the planet emits some kind of ass-end-of-Murphy's-law substance. I can't blame it though. We have been very shitty guests.

I was enjoying nothing in my dreamless mind when a sharp beep softly made its way through my consciousness. One trill note from an outboard sensor had Dinah and I both sitting straight up. Dinah had her revolver up by her ear, eyes to the door while I stifled a yawn. Our sensors were sensitive, but they were not species oriented. They rang whenever something bigger than a skag pup broke the shield barrier.

I stood up from the bunk and hit the external cameras, four screens lit up and sure enough, there was a person out there. But they were moving strangely, not quite zombie like but certainly not in a normal manner. I tapped another button and the early morning gray was lit up with the scuttle's external lights. We had no on board weapons but the shield was orbit worthy so it would take a hell of a gun to break through it.

The figure threw their hands up at the blinding lights but did not shy away from the ship. The figure quickly looked towards the ship and started shouting. We couldn't hear them through the thick hull, but I didn't need to. They were yelling for help. I also recognized the person as the kid who had tried to shake my hand as a fist bump.

I also noticed the hand under the jacket and the way she was walking. She was hurt, and badly from the way she could barely take a step.

It took all of a thought for me to turn and opened the door, grabbing a med kit on my way out. The kid's words immediately floated to us as I stepped into the oppressive heat of the planet.

"Mr. Ren! Please, help me!"

I felt Dinah at my back, her hand canon covering angles as I made my way towards the kid. I realized at that moment that if this were a trick, I was screwed. I didn't have a shirt on much less a shield. But every instinct screamed it was legit, and my instincts have a really good record of saving my ass.

"Alright kid, I'm here," I said stepping out of the light so they could see me. I held up the med kit, so they didn't freak at something in my hand. The kid smiled weakly and eyelids fluttered urging me to pick up my pace. I barely caught the kid before they were unconscious.

I laid the kid out and saw the hand under the jacket had been covering a bloody wound. I quickly inspected the wound and administered a healing nanite to slow down the bleeding. The kids' skin had turned pale and the dark edges of the wound told me plenty.

"How are we," I asked over my shoulder.

"Exposed but no movement yet," came Dinah's response.

"I need to get her in," I said, easily lifting the kid in my arms.

"I got you."

"I know."

Nothing else was said for the short trip back into the scuttle. Dinah closed the door and engaged the locks before turning to us. The kid was breathing ragged, she had lost a lot of blood, but it was a slower bleed. She had been stabbed, viciously from the looks of the bruising. She had also had the crap kicked out of her. Kid was tough.

"I need a real medical room," I said.

"Get us to the B&B," Dinah replied. "I can handle the bleeding."

I didn't argue but got behind the stick. Nothing sobered my mind like the feel of a gazillion megaton power churning under my feet. The scuttle engine fired up and I didn't waste time with warning. Dinah knew the game and my take off was as gentle as whisper.

We burst through the atmosphere in seconds, using the solar charged thruster to bully the ship through the outer layers where the weird gravity can chew up lesser ships. The Bed and Breakfast, our orbital ship was a beauty to see. She always felt like home.

But if that kid died, I would unleash all her wrath on that tiny shit hole planet.


	4. Chapter 4 - Sins

**Chapter 4 – Sins of the Brother**

I had never seen Ren angry. Pandora did that to people though. You would never know it though from the way he flew. He was as smooth as the girls skin whose blood now leaked all over my hand. I gave her another healing nanite, but these would not stabilize her. They worked to slowly. We needed the good stuff and Ren would get us there.

The Bed and Breakfast came into view and I could feel the collective sigh between Ren and me. He loved the ship like I loved my Cathy. We had been paired together on Timbuktu because I needed a ship and he needed the work. A merc agency had paired us through their network and I had come to call this ship my home as well in the years after that.

She was an oval shaped orbital jumper, she was slick, well cared for and fast. She was a lot like Ren, she lacked any massive firepower but getting through the ships jacked up defenses would be a miracle. Ren could ram the ship through a planet's core and come out the other side just fine. I don't know if that is true, but Ren had never lied to me before.

As usual Ren landed us soft as a feather in the hangar, his hands flying confidently around the flight console. You would think after all the years I would know what the buttons do but flying just wasn't in my blood. I tried flying the scuttle once. We were stuck on an outpost planet for three months while Ren fixed it. He did it all with a smile though and has never mentioned it again.

"Get her to medical while I spin the battery down," Ren said powering down the shields and opening the doors. I picked the girl up and started off the ship.

"Dinah, identity confirmed," the ships computer rang out over the intercoms. "Ren, identity confirmed."

"Fire up med bay 1," I said as I stepped off the ship. I was answered with a confirmation as I made my way towards the hangar doors.

Medical had three bays, the bays were charged nanites that could actually bring a person back from the very brink of death. Both a Ren and I needed it many times in the past. I placed the girl gently on the bay table and hit the cycle. I stepped away and watched as the hatch door shut and locked. Almost immediately the small bay was filled with the nanite spray and there was little more for us to do.

"Thanks," Ren said as he entered the room. I smiled in return, he looked haunted.

"You okay?"

"No, this kid is what, twelve? Why the hell bring her to such a place for such a stupid errand?"

"Maybe she is a soldier," I offered although I knew that was wrong. Every soldier knows the fist bump. Trying to shake hands is a good way to get shot without your hands on your weapon.

"Maybe," Ren responded then we were silent for a moment. I could feel his energy returning to normal. "Alright, I am going to try and reach the group on Pandora."

"I can start scanning Sanctuary for any signs as well."

"Also see if we can find a video feed that might still be live in that bar. I doubt we will but better to check than miss it."

With that we both turned away from the girl and went about our tasks. She would need a few hours in the bay to rest. The nanites would be done by the time we reached the equipment, but her body would still need to rest. Losing that much blood wrecks more than just your chem levels.

I sat at my station and started the scan for an open video frequency, I started with Sanctuary and had it expanded outwards but there was nothing. It was always a long shot but worth it if we could find something.

My next step was hand scanning the area of Sanctuary for life. The orbital scans are hard core. We can pick up life signs of insects from all the way out here and we can generally analyze the form to determine what it is we are seeing. But the plant made Sanctuary a tough scan. Part of the plant still lived, even if it was dying, enough clung to warmth to throw off the sans.

I ran the scan through several spectrums, but I got nothing in response. Just the same dying plant life and insects. The city was floating so I didn't expect much in the way of animal life but felt I was missing something. I decided to go old school and brought up the orbital camera.

I loved this thing. I could see several light sectors away with this camera or I could pinpoint a person's face on a planet. Ren had certainly spent plenty of money upgrading the ships equipment. Granted, we were well paid for most of our jobs now, but we weren't always that lucky. But once we had visited a space station with a deep space telescope. I had watched a new star being born in the outer depths of the universe through that telescope. Ren had seen the wonder on my face and the next week had this camera installed. I still loved it.

I started scanning Sanctuary again, this time with my own eyes. That is when I saw it. Nothing. No bodies, no blood, nothing. There was no overwatch, no guards patrolling the city, no signs of a battle, no signs anyone had been there. The plants on the rooftop we had landed on were still burned and dead but that was it.

"Ren," I said over my shoulder. I was surprised to find I was alone, then the smell hit me. It smelled like teriyaki chicken and rice which meant Ren was cooking. My stomach yelled at me and I checked the time. I had been working the scanners for three hours. I was thirsty and hungry.

Our orbital scanner has a food synthesizer but when we can, we like to eat real food. Ren came equipped with kitchen skills, but I have learned over the years and we often take turns making food when we have it. He is better than me but at least my food is edible now.

I charged to the mess hall and stopped when I heard soft conversation.

"How do you learn that," came the voice of a young girl.

"I practiced a lot," Ren replied. "Dinah had to learn to cook also and she learned by practicing. I can show you if you like."

"You think I can do this?"

"Anyone can, kid. Here, this is called…"

"Teriyaki chicken, I know we have it in our food synth."

"Try that one."

I entered quietly and watched as the young girl from the planet took her first bite of the steaming meat. Her eyes went wide as she bit down.

"That okay," Ren said as he poured more rice into a second bowl. The girl nodded enthusiastically, and she tore into the rest of the food. Ren chuckled as he loaded the bowl in his hands with more of the shredded chicken and looked to me. He held the bowl out to me with a grin.

"Hey Dinah, this is Aiko," Ren indicated the young girl who was busy still tearing through her bowl of food. I couldn't blame her; the scent alone had my mouth watering.

"Hello, Aiko," I said taking a seat at the counter. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," Aiko managed to say between a mouth full of food. "Thank you for your help."

I couldn't help but grin at the saucy mess of her face.

"You are welcome. I am glad we got to you," I took a hefty bite of the food and let it melt in my mouth as the rare spices played across my tongue. There are simply things the replicator cannot get right.

"Aiko told me a little bit of what happened," Ren said leaning against the other side of the counter. "When you have eaten, let's chat."

I nodded my agreement and it took me about a minute to empty my bowl. Fortunately, Ren makes plenty of food when he cooks, and he was already filling my second. I nodded my thanks and Ren leaned back again.

"Find anything on the scanners," he asked. I glanced at Aiko who was finishing the last of her own food. She looked around and Ren refilled her bowl as well. I noticed he had not eaten yet but there were only two bowls. We didn't really have guests on the B&B.

"Nothing," I admitted, shaking my head. "And I mean nothing. No signs that there was anyone there at all."

Ren nodded his head as if it was exactly what he expected to hear. Maybe it was. Maybe in the spy world large groups just vanished all the time. I guess, come to think of it, it happens in my world to but there are usually at least body parts.

"I checked the New-U systems," Ren said rubbing his chin. "There has been no recent usage, hell no usage on Pandora for months."

"No one has died on Pandora for months?" I asked. That seemed an oddity.

"Oh, I am certain many people have died but the New-U here was only open to people that Handsome Jack himself approved. There were only four DNA captures on the whole planet."

"How is that even possible?"

"Hyperion had complete control of the New-U for a long time," Aiko said quietly. She had stopped eating and was staring at the countertop. "When Atlas went down after the first vault opening, Hyperion bought out the Atlas share of the New-U and slowly began pushing everyone else out of the game. Places like Jakobs or Vladof had no real issues since they made far more money from their weapons sales and only had a small percentage of the New-U kickbacks.

"When my Uncle bought the Hyperion rights, giving us almost complete ownership of the New-U system, he immediately set out to rent out its use to the other companies. Since the other companies were hiring and certifying vault hunters, this is being sold as a way to save the other corporations gobs of money. The corporations don't have to pay out death penalties and can charge the vault hunters for every use."

"Just like Hyperion did, although I doubt the people in the system had much say in the costs," Ren filled in as he set down two glasses of purified water. One thing the replicator did very well, was make clean water.

"Okay, so what does this have to do with you getting stabbed," I asked after a quiet moment. I watched a tear slip from Aiko's brown eyes and slide down her soft face.

"Mrs. Mae found out what my uncle was really up to," she said with a sniff.

"Let me do this Aiko," Ren said softly. "You have lived this too many times already."

Aiko looked grateful to Ren and nodded. She picked up her water and padded out of the room.

"This gets pretty ugly, D," Ren said, the humor gone from his eyes. "It's full of a lot of bravery and a lot of stupidity."

"That sounds about right," I replied. Some people often confused the two or used them synonymously with each other. Do that to a soldier and we will rip your ears off.

"Mae Lynn Anshin is the only daughter of Haruto Anshin. Mae discovered that one of her four brothers, Aiko does not know which one, wants to find a way to weaponize the New-U system. He wants to be able to make soldiers out of anyone who uses it. So, he introduced the Z-virus into its core DNA rebuilder."

Ren sighed and went quiet. The ramifications of this were staggering but I still didn't see the connection.

"So, how does that knowledge stab Aiko and send her bleeding to our ship?" I asked slowly. I felt a little dumb, but I knew Ren was already ten moves ahead of me.

"Mae came to ask us to look into how far the research has gone. Aiko only knows a few minor details and then I will fill in some blanks. One of Mae brother's is going behind Haruto's back to sabotage the New-U system to create zombified soldiers. Mae was going to sign us up as vault hunters because that would give us access to locations and gear, she can't afford on her own.

"Haruto probably won't listen to a woman speak badly of one of his sons so she feels she can't go to him directly. But if she had some sort of proof, she would at least be able to stop the process from going any further. In order to test what the brother is doing, he has added the Z-virus only to specific New-U systems, mostly where the other vault hunters are currently gathering. Every one of those vault hunters will have their DNA added to the New-U through the corporate rental agreement with Anshin. When any of them get killed, the DNA rebuilder will remake them but with the Z-virus embedded there."

I started to see it now. The big picture.

"Let me take a shot," I said, and Ren nodded grimly. "The brother found out and arrived to silence the sister?"

Ren shrugged, "That's a fair guess, this is where we get more into conjecture than any real knowledge. But I think you are on the right track. Someone figured out what was happening and came out to stop her."

"Okay, that is bad and probably needs our attention," I said clearing my head. "But why was Aiko stabbed and left behind?"

"She was to be an example," Ren said slowly. "She is Mae's daughter."

"But all the soldiers," I cut in as my thoughts scrambled to put the puzzle back together.

"Yeah," Ren spat. "This is where it gets stupid. So, the guy named Poppa is like a personal assistant to Mae. Aiko doesn't know is real name, everyone calls him Poppa. He hired that idiot Ricky and twenty Bandits to play back up for them. They gave them guns, nice shields, nice army tech so it would all look legit."

"Big brother shows up," I broke in, already seeing where this was going. "And has his own deniability at his fingertips. Flashed company money and the Bandits switch sides faster than a skag mating ritual."

Ren only nodded.

"Okay, so they have to still be on the planet," I said, finally working out the details. "We just need to find out where they went."

"You want to go after them," Ren asked. It made sense, it wasn't our fight and he was right, it was beyond stupid to hire bandits. But it took a lot of guts to bring your kids to a planet filled with assholes on the off chance to catch Ren and me.

"Yeah, Ren," I said after a moment. "Hell, yeah I do."

Ren looked me in the eyes, and we came to an agreement without a single word needing to be said.


End file.
